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John Kirk-Anderson / Stuff
Matt Anderson was found guilty on the assault and strangulation charges during a trial with just one judge in July in Christchurch District Court.
A harness racing star admitted that his actions were “despicable” when he drowned and struck a woman who he feared would be killed.
Matt Anderson, a former New Zealand representative and the national prime minister’s winning harness racing driver, was sentenced to three months of community detention and 12 months of intensive supervision by the Christchurch District Court on Tuesday.
The 28-year-old was convicted of assault and intentional breathlessness by strangulation after a trial by a judge in July.
The assault occurred at his home on February 2. He grabbed the victim by the neck and strangled her, then kicked her out of her home and locked the door to prevent her from retrieving the car keys that were still inside.
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The victim crawled through an open window to try to get her keys, but Anderson confronted her. He assaulted her again and kicked her in the face while she was on the ground.
The victim called 111 and told the ER operator that she thought Anderson was going to kill her. They told him to run to the road.
Jamie Searle / Stuff
Anderson is a former New Zealand representative and the National Prime Minister’s winning harness racing driver.
The woman told the court that she saw Anderson run back to the house to look for her car and was afraid he would run her over. He jumped into a ditch and hid until he saw a police car arrive.
During the trial, Anderson denied assaulting or strangling the woman. He claimed the woman grabbed him by the arm and fell as he walked away.
Judge Stephen O’Driscoll rejected Anderson’s version of events, saying the bruises on the victim’s body were inconsistent with his fall on the carpet, and what he told the court was consistent with what he told the operator. from 111.
The victim previously said Things he wanted Anderson to acknowledge what he did. He had blamed her and refused to take responsibility for what he did throughout the judicial process.
“The only way this is not going to happen to someone else is if they find out what they did,” he said.
On Tuesday, defense attorney Allister Davis said Anderson had genuine remorse for his actions.
He had had time to reflect on the incident and acknowledged that his actions were “despicable and not justified in any way or respect.”
THINGS
In September 2018, police raided harness racing stables across the country amid allegations of race-fixing and corruption as part of Operation Inca. Stuff understands that much of the evidence in relation to previous drug charges against Matt Anderson was gathered during Operation Inca. (Video first published in September 2018)
The assault was out of line for Anderson and “a significant fall from grace” for him, David said.
Police argued that Anderson lacked genuine remorse and instead of acknowledging what he did, he went to trial and accused the victim of embellishing his statements to ruin his career.
The judge said those who gave Anderson’s references were not present when the assault occurred and did not see the victim’s bruises.
“What you did was wrong, Mr. Anderson, and should not be repeated,” the judge told him.
The judge ordered Anderson to pay $ 5,000 emotional damages to the victim.
Banned from racing
Just under a year ago, Anderson was fired without conviction after admitting he possessed MDMA for supply and two counts of supply of MDMA.
Things understands that much of the evidence against Anderson was obtained from undercover surveillance as part of Operation Inca, a 17-month investigation that culminated in raids on 17 horse stables and properties in Canterbury, Manawatū and Invercargill in September 2018.
Although no criminal charges were added to his record, Anderson was indicted by the Racing Integrity Unit (RIU) as the acts were deemed detrimental to the interests of sled racing.
The RIU also charged him with refusing to provide information to its investigators, which was deemed more serious than the first charge.
He appeared before a Judicial Control Authority and was prohibited from participating in sled racing for six months. The disqualification went into effect on August 1.
Davis said Anderson’s assault conviction meant he would not be allowed to enter a racetrack for two years unless the Exemptions Committee gave him permission.
He said the consequences of Anderson’s offense were significant.
